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O-Net Rules to be Strictly Adhered to

 

Only First-Attempt Scores Accepted for University Entrance

 

Students can take the Ordinary National Educational Test (O-Net) as many times as they want, but only the scores from the first attempt will be considered for admission applications, the chairman of the University Presidents Council of Thailand (UPCT) clarified yesterday.

 

"This is in keeping with the concept behind the introduction of the O-Net and the new university admissions system," Pratya Vesarach said.

 

The new student assessment method gives a 30-per-cent weighting to the grade point average (GPA) during senior secondary years in university-admission criteria. The idea is that students' academic performance in high school should also be considered, instead of just the results of a post-high school test under the old system of "central entrance examinations".

 

For decades Grade 12 students had to solely rely on their performance in a single entrance examination for admission to higher-education institutes of their choice. Several years ago the high-school GPA and percentile ranking were included in university-admission criteria with a 10-per-cent weighting. In some years, Grade 12 students were also allowed to sit the entrance examinations twice and then to use the higher score in admission applications.

 

However, it was only this year that the new admission system took full effect with the introduction of the O-Net and Advanced National Educational Test (A-Net) as the criteria for the university admission system, alongside the GPA.

 

While all students sit for all five subjects of the O-Net, the A-Net is optional. Only some faculties at some institutes require the A-Net scores. The A-Net scores were necessary for those trying to enter medical schools or engineering faculties. At some communication-arts faculties, O-Net scores suffice.

 

The formula for O-Net/A-Net weighting also varies according to the faculty or institution. At some places, O-Net scores are given more consideration while at others the emphasis is on A-Net scores.

 

The UPCT has said the O-Net scores should serve as a main criterion for university admission because the National Institute of Educational Testing Services (NIETS), which conducts the O-Net and A-Net exams, designed the O-Net to assess the academic standard of students as they are about to complete or just completed Grade 12.

 

Pratya said that since subsequent O-Net tests would be taken after the students had already completed Grade 12 for at least one year, it was right that universities considered only the scores from the first time they sit the test.

 

"It's different from the entrance exams or the A-Net. Those are to test [specific] academic knowledge of the test takers," said Pratya, who is also president of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University.

 

His clarification follows growing complaints from a group of students who completed Grade 12 this year but felt their O-Net scores were not high enough and want to take the test again before applying to their preferred faculties next year.

 

The NIETS has already called on students to decide carefully whether to sit the O-Net again, given that universities will not accept the scores from the second test.

 

A first-year student, who declined to be named, complained yesterday that the issue was not the new university-admission system alone.

 

"We can't forget that the O-Net earlier this year was mired with problems. So, why don't we get a second chance?" she said.

 

Earlier this year, the NIETS repeatedly cancelled the declaration of results of the first ever O-Net and A-Net exams due to errors in assessing the test papers. The next O-Net exams will be on February 24-25.

 

Urisara Kowitdamrong

 

The Nation